I love skiing. Like, really love it. So, a week in Chamonix last spring with a group of climber friends who had invited me to tag along was really a no-brainer. Their goal was to climb as many routes around Aiguille du Midi as possible and mine was to ski until my legs fell off.

Since it was early April, I tweaked my expectations to match the conditions. Obviously, fluffy powder was out of the question, but I was sort of looking forward to plowing through fields of soft spring slush. Kind of a poor man’s pow, am I right?

In the end, my week consisted of a lovely combination of smooth runs on the groomers of the three resorts that surround Cham, some light ski touring, a few afternoon hikes, copious amounts of falafel at Cool Cats, and, for the grand finale, a descent through La Valée Blanche with my pals. This famous route really is an off-piste eldorado, with stupendous views of Mont Blanc, the Dent du Géant, les Drus and other famous peaks, close encounters with stunning glaciers, and miles and miles of excellent skiing terrain.

I didn’t do any climbing this time around, though. Maybe next time. But only if I forget to bring my skis.